Saturday long run

I ran 9 miles yesterday for my weekly long run.  That's the farthest I have run in some time; I think it was probably last year at this time that I went that far in preparation for last years Shamrock half marathon.  I didn't have any arch pain and that was a great relief.  It's been a bit of a "niggling" issue for me of late but I believe the active stretching and strengthening exercises i am doing are helping.  

The weather yesterday was perfect for a run.  It was in the high 50's F, sunny, with a bit of breeze. I ran in shorts and a tank top and was perfectly comfortable.  I supplemented with some gel and electrolyte in capsule form which I find very convenient.  I used a fuel belt with one 8 oz bottle with a mixture of 4 oz gel and 4 oz water.  There is a water fountain about three miles into the run which is very convenient so when I run that route I don't have to carry much water. That's one of the things I really enjoy about the Mt Vernon Trail.  I do find that, in agreement with most of the fueling literature I have come across, that any run I do that lasts longer than one hour is helped significantly by moderate use of supplemental fuel and electrolyte.  I use and am a big fan of Hammer products which can be found here.  

I ran a very steady 11:00 pace for much of the run and is spite of some large heart rate spikes at the beginning of the run it steadied out to average about 144 bpm. I felt a surge of inspiration at the 8.25 mile mark and ended up cruising the last 3/4 mile at a sub 8 minute mile pace and it felt really good.  I actually felt so good I was grinning ear to ear and felt pure joy as I came to a walk at the end of the run.